Always On My Mind
by FunkyDancingDinos
Summary: Hiatus. Being revised. Bella Swan couldn’t be happier with her life: she’s got a great roommate and job, a playful dog, and she’s in her last year of college. But something is missing and she thinks she might have just found...him. AUH. Canon
1. Moving In

**Note: **This is my first full Twilight fic; so go easy on me at first. This is AU. Everyone is human. I'm trying to keep all character's canon to how they are in the books, while keeping them... human. Which is not exactly easy. So remember that Bella never met Edward (She hasn't experienced love and such, so her character may seem rather shallow in a way at first) and she never moved to Forks. I'm sure after reading you will have questions, so don't hesitate to ask. I'll try to answer them as best as I can. For the most part, the plot of this is already written (Along with the next couple of chapters!), but there are parts with kinks I'm still trying to work out. Please give me a review with constructive criticism!

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Twilight/New Moon/Eclipse, or anything associated with the books. All credit goes to Stephenie Meyer and her publishers.

* * *

Always On My Mind

-♥-

Bella Swan gave a breathy sigh, sweeping her dark brown hair from her sweaty face. She had spent over half of the day packing and moving all her things from her college dorm at the University of Washington to an average, comfortable apartment. The rest of the day was spent unpacking and talking to her mother on the phone.

"Are you sure you want to do this, Bella?" Renée Dwyer asked her daughter several times. "I mean, you and Lauren were getting along so well! She's such a nice girl."

Bella tried not to snort at that. Lauren Mallory had been anything _but_ nice. In fact, the girl was the devil reincarnated. She purposely would come in late at night, sometimes quite drunk or with a boy (A lot of times both), and make as much noise as possible. She would leave her junk on Bella's side of the room (The clean side) and blame Bella whenever something went wrong. Worst of all she'd been using Bella's strawberry scented shampoo and refilling it with bath scrub that smelt like butter and destroying her clothing.

Whenever Bella would confront Lauren, she'd sneer and act innocent. After two years of this, Bella was feed up. Of course, it hadn't always been that way. Their freshman year was peaceful, but that could have something to do with Lauren never being home at the same time as Bella. It wasn't till halfway through their first year when Lauren decided to go mental and blame everything on Bella and her dog, Lizzy.

Thank God for Angela Weber who insisted that Bella just move in with her since she was getting a new apartment to get off campus and closer to her job at the hospital. To say she was thrilled would be an understatement.

"Mom," Bella had said in an undertone of 'do-we-have-to-go-threw-this-again?' and a slight whine. "Lauren was not nice. She spanked Lizzy for wanting to go to the bathroom outside and blamed her mess on my dog! She tore my favorite shirt and denied it."

"I'm sure she didn't mean to," said Renée. "It was accident."

"An accident!?" Bella had snapped incredulously. "She told me it was on her side of the room and she wanted the lace to put on her lamp shade! Her lamp shade mom!"

And it was a very ugly lamp shade at that.

Lauren was studying fashion design and had begun to dabble in furniture as well. Her whole side of the room was decorated in pink, silver, and ugly eyelet materials. It looked like the Easter bunny had puked on everything.

"Besides," Bella had continued. "Angela is allowing Lizzy to stay in the apartment. There's a backdoor in my room so I can let her out whenever and she's even letting me help decorate. How can I say no to that? The rent isn't even that expensive. Mrs. Jackson is giving me paid-vacation for a week just to get settled in."

Renée couldn't argue any longer, although she tried. It had been four hours since her last phone call and Bella was sure that it wouldn't be much longer till she called back to see if she was ready to give up already. No matter what, Bella wasn't going to allow her mother say, "I told you so, Sweetie."

Groaning, Bella put the last box down in a pile in the corner of her new bedroom. "That's the last of them, Ange," she called out.

Angela poked her head in the room and grinned. "Perfect! Pizza just arrived."

"Thank God," moaned Bella. "I'm starving. I don't think I had that much crap last year… Come on, Lizzy girl. Let's get some dinner."

Lizzy, Bella's year old golden retriever gave a shrill bark from the ball she had curled up in and rose, wagging her tail happily while she followed Bella into the kitchen.

It was a small kitchen, more like a little hallway. There was a door on either side, one leading to the bedrooms the other to the rest of the house. The walls between were stuffed with counters and shelves that boxes were piled up high on. Angela's mother worked at a department store in the Seattle had managed to get them tons of furniture and such for great prices… or free. Still the little blue kitchen was homey and cute.

Angela was leaned over the counter holding her face in her palms, staring out the window for the pizza man. She was so tall that she looked rather awkward at the angle she was bent. Her light brown hair was pulled into a high floppy bun on the top of her hair and her cotton shorts were dirty.

"What are you doing?" Bella asked, leaning against the doorway with crossed arms. Beside her, Lizzy barked happily.

"Waiting for Ben. I told him I'd save him a few slices of the ham and pineapple – it's his favorite," Angela said, not even looking over at them. "He's late."

Bella rolled her eyes and smiled. Angela Weber and Ben Cheney had been best friends since they were kids, but recently they had begun to become rather… hormonal around each other, mentally. Both denied it though. The sexual frustration was enough that even Bella, who had never had a boyfriend nor been kissed, could feel it.

She bent down beside Lizzy, kissing her nose and snuggled into her for a hug. "Come on girl, let's get some pizza."

She grabbed two slices of cheese, putting one in the metal bowl on the floor of Lizzy and moved to stand next to Angela, staring out the window while she ate. "Why aren't you eating?"

"Waiting," Angela responded, simply. "How is it?"

"Warm, cheesy… crunchy… _perfect_," Bella teased, milking the taste when she took a huge bite. Angela laughed and pushed her in the side lightly. "I'm kidding. It's good though. Do you think he's okay?"

Sighing, Angela nodded. "He had a big project he had to finish up. He's working on a film for the festival and wants to win it more than I've ever seen him want anything."

"Not as much as he wants you…" Bella didn't look at Angela as she said this, but she could still see her face heat up slightly from her peripheral vision. "Why don't you just tell him, Ange?"

"Tell him?" Angela's voice scaled up a few pitches. "Bella… He's been my best friend since I was old enough to walk. We took baths together. I don't know how to even tell him, 'Hey Ben, I love you and want to spend the rest of my life with you.' I don't know how he'd take that. I… I'm afraid he doesn't feel that way."

Bella opened her mouth to reply, but just as she did, a different voice sounded.

"I'm sure he does, Angie. I bet he's felt like that for a long time and doesn't know how to tell you either," a deeper voice said.

Both Bella and Angela jumped and turned around, screaming. There Ben was, pink faced and grinning stupidly. His black hair was mused from the beanie he always wore and his squared, black-rimmed glasses had been deposed of for a pair of contacts. Even if he was quite a few inches shorter than Angela, they were perfect together.

"Ben!" squeaked Angela. Her face had reached a new color of red that only Bella had ever succeeded. "How did you get in?"

"Well," Bella started, smiling knowingly. "I think I'm just going to go take another piece and start reading with Lizzy. You two have fun. Come on Lizzy girl," said Bella, backing out of the room, smiling.

As she was leaving, she heard Ben answer Angela with, "Bella's backdoor was open. I wanted to take a look at the swing before I forgot. You said it was squeaking. Just needs some WD-40. How about we go out there right now?"

Bella was out of range before she could hear anything else, but she knew Angela, and she wasn't about to pass up the offer to spend time with Ben. Bella wondered why they waited this long to admit how they felt any way. She knew that Angela had liked him they were in high school. They had been each other's prom dates and were, from what her friend, Jessica Stanley had said, inseparable.

_They just needed a little push_, Bella thought to herself. She grabbed a coke from box in the living room floor and a book, Lizzy barking at her feet while she walked, and took a seat on the couch. It was the only piece of furniture beside their beds that wasn't covered in boxes at the moment.

Lizzy jumped up beside her and curled into a large, yellow ball, resting her head on Bella's thigh. Luckily, Bella had picked a dog that didn't drool – not that she'd get mad at Lizzy for it if she did, but it would be kind of gross. Lizzy was Bella's baby, her pride and joy. Charlie, her father, had bought Lizzy for Bella's twenty-first birthday. Ever since Lizzy had followed Bella everywhere, including school and Bella couldn't imagine it any other way. Luckily her dorm allowed only domestic animals in, though few students bothered with them because it was too much work.

The only time they were separated was when Bella went to class or work, every other moment of the day was spent together. Lizzy slept in her small twin bed, which had recently been ditched for a full-bed. In the mornings they ran together and Bella made sure to play catch with her as well. While Bella would work on a paper, Lizzy would curl in a ball on the bed and watch. And when it came time for food, Lizzy always got a little of something – just not the chocolate!

Bella cracked her book open to the front and yawned. "Do you have any idea how pooped I am, Lizzy girl?" The dog lifted her head, which Bella petted softly. "I think I'm just going to take a nap. How's that sound?"

Shifting around so that Bella was laying down with Lizzy on her belly and chest, rubbing behind her furry ear, she gave a last yawn before falling asleep.

--

"Augh… Lizzy, you stink girl," Bella mumbled, sleepily. She cracked her eye open to see her dog resting on her neck. Gently, she pushed herself up and away from the sleeping dog.

The room was dark, but there was still light outside, so it couldn't have been too late and judging by the way she felt, she couldn't have slept more than half an hour.

_Good thing too_, she reminded herself. _You still have a ton to do_.

Grabbing a cold slice of pizza, noticing that the box of ham and pineapple had disappeared, she wondered down the hall to her room. The light was still on and the backdoor was cracked letting a warm breeze in. She quickly chewed the pizza and sucked the coke down she had opened earlier.

There were piles of boxes in her room. Her bed was barely made, only a single sheet and pillow left out, and her dresser was completely empty. She didn't have much furniture at the moment so she made a quick note on a receipt from Wal-Mart to go shopping. She had saved up enough money, and with the help of her mother and her husband, Phil, and her own father, she had enough extra cash to get something nice – Especially a desk and bookcase.

At least four of her boxes were books.

Bella grabbed the nearest box and opened it to find her winter clothing, just as her phone began to ring. It had only been installed for two days and only four people beside Bella and Angela knew the numbers; Ben, Charlie, Angela's mom, and Renée.

"Hello?" Bella asked, picking up the phone.

"Hi honey! How's the moving?" Renée's voice asked from the other end. Mentally Bella groaned. She wasn't going to stop calling.

"It's fine mom. I just finished eating dinner," she told her mother. "Ben came over to eat as well."

"That's nice," said Renée, not sounding very interested. "Are they dating yet?"

Taking a quick peek out the window, she saw Ben and Angela on the outdoor swing, wrapped up in each other's arms and laughing. The box of pizza was underneath them as they moved back and forth, most likely forgotten or already gone. Angela had a full appetite.

"I'm not too sure, mom. Ben walked in when Angela was telling me about how she felt. He heard it all I think and now there outside cuddling on the swing."

Renée gave a small giggle. "Well, that's nice. You should get a boyfriend too."

_Not again_, Bella groaned. "Mom, I've told; I don't have time for boys right now. I've got Lizzy and that's enough."

"I worry about you," her mother admitted. "It's not normal for a twenty-two year old college girl to not have a boyfriend."

"Since when have I ever been normal? Besides, wasn't it you who told me that I should wait till I was older before I started dating?"

Renée groaned. "I meant till you were in college. Boys in high school aren't ready for a relationship. I know that your father's and my divorce gave you a different outlook on life, but you should at least date and get to know the opposite sex. Having a boyfriend can make you feel better about yourself. You don't have to get married."

"Wow, mom," whined Bella. "I can't believe you just blew that bomb on me."

"I'm just saying, is all, Bells. You can't live alone or with a dog for the rest of your life. Find a guy who can make you feel young and beautiful; go on a date or two… You'll see. Phil makes me feel like supermodel every night!"

Bella gagged. "_Ew_. Okay, mom – Too much info for tonight. I'm going now. I'll call you if I need anything. I love you. Sleep well and say hello to Phil for me. Bye!"

Hanging up as quickly as she could, Bella fell back into her single pillow and began to laugh hysterically until the backdoor opened and Ben and Angela came in. She was still giggling even then.

"What's so funny, Swan?" Ben teased, shutting and locking the door.

Bella hiccupped and rolled onto her belly. "My mom."

Angela snickered. "I have to agree, she is funny. Did she call just to make sure we had enough toilet paper again?"

Ben laughed and mumbled something about a drink, leaving only Bella and Angela in the room.

"Nope. She wanted to ask when I planned on getting a boyfriend," Bella admitted, groaning. "Which reminds me; how did it go?"

Angela smiled and sat down beside the brunette. "Good. He asked if that was how I really felt and I told him yes. And then he kissed me. It was so soft and quick, but… Oh Bella!" She squealed softly, grinning. "He's a wonderful kisser!"

Bella laughed with her friend at her. "I'm glad you two worked it out. Are you…"

"Dating?" Angela asked, tilting her head. "Yes and no. We're going on a date this Friday to see a film, but not officially dating. We want to make sure that this is what we really want before we dive in too far."

The two girls sat talking for a few more minutes. Lizzy joined them at one point, licking Angela on the cheek and then bounced back down off the bed and into the hall. When Ben popped back in to say he needed to leave soon, Bella bide him goodnight and then smiled at Angela who looked nervous.

As soon as they were gone, she pushed the box of clothing away and dug threw another to find her comforter she took form Charlie's house; it was royal blue and fluffy, and clashed horribly with the beige walls in her new room. She didn't care though; all she wanted was to sleep.

Tomorrow would be a long day. Luckily it was Saturday and she was off for the next week, but she had a number of things to do; unpacking, furniture shopping, grocery shopping, and she needed to work on a paper for her Literature class due Monday she'd put off for days now.

Yes, she was in for a long and uneventful day…

* * *

_Edited 1-25-08_


	2. It's A Natural Talent

Always On My Mind

-♥-

"Hey, Bells," called Angela outside of door, waking Bella up.

Bella had been wrapped up in her comforter, forming a large cocoon around her, her face pressed down into the pillow. Slowly, she opened her eye and groaned. Her voice was a mumble against the cotton as she asked, "Yeah?"

"Your dad just called. He wanted to make sure you got settled in okay," Angela told her as she opened the door. She giggled softly and then continued to say, "I told him everything was fine, but I don't know now. Do you always look like that when you first wake up?"

"Oh, ha-_ha_," mocked Bella, picking up her pillow and chucking it at her tall friend who ducked. "Thanks. And yes, for your information, I do. I need coffee."

"I just stopped by Starbucks; there's a coffee in the kitchen for you. I'm going to work for a little bit just to make sure the babies are all okay," Angela told her. She worked in the local hospital as intern, soon to be a nurse. "You staying in all day?"

Bella shook her head and sat up, stretching. "Mostly. I'm going shopping first."

"Great. Can you get some milk? Ben drank it all last night."

"Sure, sure. I was going to get groceries anyway," she told her, shrugging. "It's not a big deal."

When living with Renée, she was the one to take of things shopping and paying bills, until she married Phil. Even then there were times when she forgot and Bella would have to take care of something last minute. Actually, that was rather common.

Angela waved goodbye and took off, already dressed in her scrubs. Bella waved and snuck out of her bed after kissing Lizzy on the head and began to get ready.

It was a bit weird at first to shower in the apartment. She kept looking over her shoulder every few minutes to make sure no one was watching her. It was just her paranoia. Who the heck would want to watch her in the shower? She was nothing to look at; just a plain-Jane. She laughed herself silly getting out.

Fifteen minutes later, she was dressed in comfortable clothing and sneakers. Lizzy was on her leash, chasing her tail around while Bella swallowed a granola bar almost whole and downed it with the coffee Angela had bought her. It was still hot and burned her tongue going down.

"Ready to run, Liz?" Bella asked her dog and grabbed the iPod she got for Christmas last year. Lizzy yelped happily. She laughed and tugged the leash as they dashed out the door.

The first few minutes they would walk to warm up their muscles. The neighborhood the apartment was in was nice and clean, and filled with even more apartments that looked exactly like the one they lived in with the exceptions of the cars in the driveways and flowerbeds. The only car parked in front of Bella's was an old red Chevy Charlie had bought her from a good friend. Or rather, got for free. It was over fifteen years old, maybe sixty by now. Renée hated it and tried to reason with Bella several times on buying a new car, but she refused. The truck was perfect for her; she didn't need a brand new car to get around.

Unlike most of the cars around campus or the apartments, her truck stuck out. She'd never lose it in the crowd – the fainted red paint and large bumper where dead-give-a way's.

Smiling to herself, Bella closed her eyes and began to jog finally. Lizzy was pulling her leash, usually a sign that someone else was nearby, but Bella ignored it and tugged back. They ran at a steady speed for several minutes; her music playing a hard rock song every once in a while that made her blood pump even harder than before.

Maybe a bit too hard, because the next thing she knew she had tripped.

"Shit," Bella hissed, grabbing her arm. Lizzy was yelping madly beside her, licking her face and nudging her. "Ah, crap."

"Are you okay?" Someone asked, helping her up from where she had face-planted.

Bella looked up into a pair of striking emerald green eyes, full of worry. She blinked, thinking her vision must have gone fuzzy because what, or rather, whom she was seeing was absolutely beautiful. His face was angular, sharp, and looked as if he'd been sculpted by Michael Angelo himself. She'd never seen anyone like him except on TV.

They stared at each other without blinking for several moments. He held her injured arm out to keep blood from getting on her clothing, smiling down at her.

Breaking from her shock, Bella nodded. "Yeah, just hurt. I think I'm going to live."

"Let me just make sure. We hit pretty hard and that ground isn't soft," he said, laughing at his own words. Bella found herself smiling regardless of the shooting pain going up her left arm. He had a beautiful, wide smile full of dazzling white teeth and small dimples in his cheeks. "Here, give me your dog's leash, I'll tie her up so I can take a look at that."

He took the leash from trembling hand and sprinted off a few feet, tying Lizzy to a post. She wasn't happy about it either. She kept tugging and barking at the guy.

"She's a wild one, huh?" He didn't seem too fazed by her in the least though.

"Yeah," Bella replied, stupidly. "She doesn't like being away from me."

The guy looked at her and smiled again. His smile was slightly crooked and reached all the way to his eyes. "Well, I can see why. Come on, have a seat over here." He motioned to a picnic table close to them.

She carefully followed him, eyebrows knitted together. He was being awfully nice -- Most guys would have just said sorry and been on there way. What was so different about him? She looked up at him as they walked. He was quite a bit taller than her five-foot-four stature, slightly built with lightly tanned skin and dark, almost copper hair. It was slightly messy and matted down from running, but looked as if it had been arranged by an artist to perfection. Her eyes drifted down to his left hand; it was bare of any rings.

_Thank God_, she thought to herself, grinning.

"Here," he offered her his hand, which she took gently – they were strong, slightly calloused, but not nearly as much as most men she knew – and he helped her sit down on the table top. She slide back some, allowing room for him to step between her knees and examine the small gash. He stared at it with narrowed eyes; flexing her arm back and forth, and touching around it. "It's not too bad. You'll have a scar but luckily you're safe from all needles. You'll need to clean it up though."

"Thank you," Bella said, blushing.

He smiled once again and checked her other arm, inspecting her as if she were a child. "You don't have a napkin or anything with you, do you?"

Bella shook her head.

"Hmmm," he mused, pinching the bridge of his nose. "I think I might have some in my car. It's just down the road from here. Would it be improper if I asked if you if I could give you a ride back to your house? At least so I can clean this up," he asked carefully. "I promise not to kill you or anything. In fact, here," he slipped a small silver flip phone from the pocket of his pants in her hand. "You can keep that with you."

Bella laughed and pushed the phone back to his hand. "That's not needed. I trust you. I don't live to far away though."

His face lit up slightly. "No, I insist. It's my fault any way."

"No it's not," Bella declared, chuckling. "Trust me, I'm use to falling. Actually, it's a bit of a natural talent of mine to trip over flat surfaces and my own feet. And I ran into you."

"Ah, but I was the one who wasn't paying attention crossing the street."

"Hardly seems like it makes you a criminal. Honestly, it's nothing. I'll live," Bella tried to reassure him.

He shook his head. "I'm a gentleman; I'm not leaving a bleeding lady to walk home. Please, let me give you and your dog a ride home?"

Bella felt her face heat up, as he grabbed her right hand tenderly. "Okay, I suppose if you insist so much."

The man grinned widely. It sent a shock of shivers down her spine. Bella watched as he untied Lizzy, bent down and whispered something to her, and scratched her behind the ear just how she liked it. She jumped into his lap to lick his face, but he pulled away laughing before she could devour him whole.

"This way then." He held his hand out, motioning toward the road.

"I can take her," Bella told the man, reaching for the leash.

He pulled away and smirked. "Who says I don't want to walk her?" He teased Bella but handed her Lizzy's leash. "So what's her name?"

"Lizzy," said Bella, simply and at an after-thought, added, "After my favorite fictional character."

"As in Elizabeth Bennet?"

Bella stared at him in shock. "How did you know?"

He laughed and grabbed her hand, pulling her along. "I may be a man, but I know my literature."

"But there are plenty of other character's who I could have named her after."

"But you didn't," he replied, smugly and grinned. "You seem the type to like Jane Austen."

"Like?" Bella scoffed. "I love her."

He snickered. "Forgive me then, ma'am."

Pretending to pout, she sighed and nodded. "You're forgiven, but only if you tell me what gave me away? Do I have that vibe?"

"Vibe?" He raised a thick brow and laughed. "No, no vibes, at least not that kind. There all good. I'm pretty good at reading people; it's the way you are. You like classic's am I correct? Jane Austen, Emily Bronte, Chaucer, C.S. Lewis?" Bella nodded. "You dress reserved and you hold your shoulders well. I'm going to go ahead and take a guess that you're a student, studying English?"

"Interesting speculation," Bella said, awed. "Mostly correct: Literature and journalism."

"You're writer?" His smile grew. "What do you write?"

"Right now?" He nodded. "Class essays."

They both laughed; Bella blushing a little when she watched him. He was defiantly an extraordinary man. Something about him, not just his beautiful face, made him different than any other man she'd met. Usually most guys used a stupid pick-up line or just went straight to the goods, so Jessica told her. But him? He was charming and suave. _That'd make any girl fall for him, including you Bella…_

A few moments later, after being stuck in her thoughts, she felt them stop. They were standing in front of a new silver Volvo. Just like him, it was clean and looked as if he'd just driven it out of the dealership parking lot.

Bella watched him whistle for Lizzy and ruffled up her fur as he let her in the back door. She barked happily and stood with two feet on the back window.

"I hope she doesn't scratch up your car," Bella admitted to him. "I don't think I have enough cash on me to buy a new one."

"Don't worry about it. I'm sure she won't do much damage. Besides, my sister-in-law is a genius with cars – she could fix it in a heartbeat."

"Well, that's relaxing."

He smiled once again and held the door open for Bella. She grinned and then blushed when she realized he had been holding her hand all along. Her stomach turned. "Sorry," she whispered.

_It was so natural_, she mused to herself over holding his hand. How could she have not noticed it?

She sat back in the seat; it was cool against her slightly over-heated body. He slide in beside her, cranking the engine and took off – a bit faster than she was use too. His eyes stayed glued to the road, but every so often he would run his hand threw his hair or turn up the AC. He looked relaxed as he drove even with a stranger in his car.

"So," he said, breaking the silence. "Which way?"

"Left." Bella clamped her hand by her side and looked out her window as they drove on, occasionally giving him directions. "So what about you? What do you do?"

He switched gears. "I graduated last year from UW's school of Law and I started working at my father's firm."

"Wow," Bella smirked. "A big time lawyer?"

He laughed and shook his head. "Not yet. I'm still the rookie. I just started working on a new case recently; it's my biggest one yet."

"You know," said Bella. "I thought you were a doctor the way you acted back there."

"No. My father, Carlisle is a doctor in a small town so I grew up watching him," he admitted. Bella looked at him confused. "My real parents died when I was nine. Carlisle and Esme are my adopted parents. My birth father was a lawyer in Chicago."

"Oh," whispered Bella, softly. "I'm sorry to hear that."

"Don't be." He turned a knob on his dashboard to turn the music up some. "Do you mind classical?"

Bella shook her head. "That's fine."

"So, what about your family?"

Bella shrugged. "There's not much to say; my parents divorced when I was about six months old. My father's the chief of police in a small town and my mom wanted the city, so she left him for Phoenix, Arizona. When I was sixteen she remarried Phil -- who's a minor league baseball player -- so I spent the next two years moving around until we moved to Florida. My dad, Charlie, had been trying to get me to come spend the summer with him. I kind of missed him and I hadn't made a decision on college yet, so I decided on UW."

"I bet he likes having you around."

"Sure," Bella shrugged. "We don't see each other much, but I call him a lot just to check up on him. Charlie's not much of a cook… I worry about him."

He laughed. "Poor guy."

"Really… Turn right here. Mine's the apartment with the big red truck in the drive way," Bella told him suddenly.

He pulled in quickly and cut the engine. "This is nice."

"Thanks, I just moved in."

Bella got Lizzy out of the back of the car, kissed her nose while he watched, smiling. "You've been a good girl, Lizzy. What do you say we get you a treat, huh?"

Lizzy barked.

"She's smart," he commented.

Bella nodded and stood up, rubbing her sweaty palm on her thigh. "Thanks. I like to think she takes after me," she joked, walking to the front door. "I'm sorry it's a bit crowded right now. I think I have a first aid kit in the bathroom."

"That's fine," he replied, earnestly.

She led him into the small kitchen, still stuffed high with boxes and the cheese pizza from last night that neither she nor Angela put away. Fortunately, there were no dirty dishes or anything else that might drive him away too soon. She put her keys and iPod down on the counter beside the book she had been reading for the past few days and grabbed a dog treat for Lizzy, which he promptly picked up.

"_The Complete Works of Shakespeare: Unabridged_," he read out loud and smirked. "You weren't kidding about literature. What's your favorite?"

"Romeo and Juliet," she answered immediately.

He nodded and grabbed her hand. "Come on; let's clean that up before you ruin your shirt."

Bella led him to the bathroom where he ordered her to sit on the sink as he dug around the cabinet to find the first aid kit. She watched him studiously; he didn't even seem fazed by the box of tampons or the mass amount of body wash Angela had stocked up on during the summer. He found a small box and popped it open, digging around while she watched him. She barely even felt the gash on her elbow any longer; it was just a small sting every so often.

"This might hurt," he announced suddenly, holding up a soaking-wet cotton ball. "You can hold my other hand and squeeze if it does."

"Okay," Bella said weak with nervous. She wasn't one much for blood or pain, but she was sure that as long as the stranger was around, the pain would be numb. "What is that?"

"Alcohol. There's no peroxide, so this is as good as I can get," he replied. "Ready?"

She nodded meekly and grabbed his other hand, already squeezing and making him chuckle. He softly wiped the cotton ball around the cut. The pain wasn't as bad as Bella had thought, but it still made her squeak and her eyes water. He quickly finished, dumping the used cotton in the toilet, and leaned down to blow at the wound gently. Bella swallowed. His face was only inches away and she could smell his masculine scent.

It was dazzling.

_Stop that Bella_, she reprimanded herself. Her face felt hot, no her whole body felt on fire. Her pulse was racing every time he blew against the skin. She was so wrapped up in trying to breath correctly she didn't even notice when put a band aid on her arm until he touched her cheek.

"Thanks," she breathed.

He used his thumb to wipe away a single tear that fell down her pink cheek and pushed her dark hair behind her ear. "You're crying?" he asked, cupping her cheek and bending closer to look into her eyes.

She sniffled. "Stupid human reaction to pain…"

He gave a throaty laugh. "It's alright."

_I know_. Bella wanted to tell him. She clamped her hand around his tighter and smiled. His eyes seemed brighter, she noticed, when she smiled. Carefully, he let his finger trace her cheek bone in a back and forth motion. She wasn't sure if it was the pain that seemed to engulf her arm at the moment or being able to feel his arm breath on his face, but she felt dizzy. And wanted nothing more than to kiss this man who she ran into and then took the blame; a man whose name she didn't even know.

He was leaning in closer, Bella realized, when the front door opened and Angela's voice erupted their moment. He jumped away and began to put up the first aid kit just as she walked in.

"You'll never guess what, Bella!" Angela exclaimed. "Ben told me he loved me… Oh, hello there…"

Bella chewed her lower lip. "Hey Ange. This is, um, this is—"

"Edward," he interrupted, holding his hand out for Angela. "We ran into each other."

"Literally," added Bella under her breath; Angela didn't hear but Edward snickered. "I skinned my elbow from falling. He was just helping me clean it up."

Angela stared at them both and then took his hand. "I remember you! I thought you looked familiar. Edward Cullen, right?"

Edward looked peeved for a split second but quickly recovered with a crooked smile. "Yeah. Angela Weber if I'm correct?"

Nodding, Angela laughed. "That's right. Hey, do you mind if I steal Bella for a minute?"

"Not at all," he assured, stepping out. "I'll just go play with Lizzy."

As soon as Edward was out of ear shot, Angela squealed and tugged on Bella's arm. "Edward? Edward Cullen? You have a lot of explaining to do Isabella Swan!"

* * *

**Note:** Thank you everyone so much for the great reviews! I was shocked when I saw how many people put this on their alert list. I hope you guys continue to enjoy it. I'm really excited about this.

Chapter has been slightly updated. Nothing major, just a few tweaks with grammar and things like that.

Please review and let me know how you like the story. Feedback and constructive criticism is very helpful. If you have any questions, feel free to ask (PM, review, email, or my livejounal which the link can be found in my profile). To answer one now:

**Where is Edward and the rest of the Cullen's**

Well, we met him in this chapter. And not to worry, we'll be seeing plenty of him! As for the rest, it will take a few chapters (Four to be exact) till we get a glimpse of them. But they too will play a large role in _Always __On__ My Mind_.


	3. Free Hugs From Fork’s Favorite Grizzly

Always On My Mind

-♥-

"Okay, spill it," demanded Angela, grinning like a possum and pushing Bella into her messy bedroom. Bella inspected her scrubs which looked slightly disarray on her best friend and her hair was pulled into a messy bun. After a moment, Angela groaned softly. "Come on, Bella. You're killing me!"

Smirking, Bella replied, "I'll tell you if you tell me why you're here so early."

Angela looked a slightly miffed, but smiled. "I was at the hospital – the babies were all okay – and as I was walking to the station, there was this single rose lying on the counter with a note," she giggled softly, "it said to go outside. So I did and then there was another rose, and another, and another, and another, and another… and then there was Ben with six more. He held them out and told me, 'It's one rose for every hour I've thought about you,' and he just kissed me!"

Both girls let out high-pitched giggles like school girls. It was the most romantic thing Bella had ever heard. Usually the guys would just leave a dozen with a card and that was that, but Ben Cheney had a heart of gold.

"After that, I just stood there smiling and we did the only thing that came to mind; we made out against the hospital wall," Angela told her, shrugging as if it was nothing.

"You minx! Tell me you didn't?" teased Bella.

"Do you want me to lie?" Bella shook her head. "Believe me, it was unexpected. He started rambling afterwards about how he wanted to tell me yesterday, but didn't have the courage and he wanted to wait till after our date but he couldn't. Next thing I knew he was kissing me and telling me that he loved me too…"

"Wow," whispered Bella. "Wow."

"I know," Angela replied softly, falling back into the bed. "I've never been kissed like that. It was so sweet. But enough about that, I want to know how you met Edward!"

"It's not a big deal, really."

No matter what, Bella didn't want to tell her best friend that she had known the guy for less than an hour and was ready to kiss him. Heck, she might have done a little more than that if he was as good at kissing as he was charming her!

The tall girl huffed. "Bella, do have any idea who he is?" Taking Bella's rather confused blinking as a hint, Angela continued on, "He went to school with me. He's a year older, but… Jessica is going to die."

"Why?" asked Bella, looking alarmed. "Is he bad?"

Laughing, Angela shook her head. "Hardly Bella. Every girl in school, even when he first moved to Forks had a crush on him. But Edward never dated. He was always studying or with his family. You met Doctor Cullen when you tripped down the stairs last summer, remember? Blond and handsome? That's Edward's adopted father."

"Really? But he's hardly old enough to have his degree, much less any kids Edward's age!"

"Yeah, I know," Angela said, "but he adopted them right after he got married because his wife couldn't have kids. Edward is her nephew if I remember correctly. Anyway, Edward's…"

"Amazing?" Bella finished. "Remarkable? Handsome. A gentleman. Strong. Charming! Funny-"

"Okay, okay," laughed Angela, stopping Bella before she could get to far ahead. "I get it. So how did you meet?"

Bella hung her head and sighed. "Honestly? He wasn't kidding about running into each other. I was jogging with Lizzy – I had my eyes closed again – and he was crossing the street. Neither of us noticed each other and crashed. I fell and skinned my arm on the sidewalk and he offered to take me home. That's all."

"Are you sure?" Angela asked in a not-so-very-convinced voice.

Bella blushed. She couldn't lie. "No. He cleaned up my cut and then," Bella lowered her voice just in case Edward was lurking, "I think he was going to kiss me right when you walked in."

"No!" gasped Angela, grinning. "Why'd you let me stop you?! Have you seen that man? Bella, he's perfect for you. You should have jumped him!"

Bella whined, throwing her face into her hands and laughing. "I've known the guy for less than an hour."

Angela sat down on the edge of the bed beside Bella and patted her arm. "You know, your mom is right; you need to get a guy. You should ask Edward out!"

It was no secret that Bella Swan didn't have experience with boys. Jessica had started telling boys she knew about Bella and giving her number out and Angela, shy and sweet, Angela had even started to set her up with boys she knew – Mainly Ben's friends who whenever she met them, talked about anime, fighting, and graphics. Ben was nice, but he was a bit to obsessed with his TV shows and filming. Still, Bella had yet to date anyone.

"What?" Bella's jaw dropped. "No way, Angela. I couldn't do it. Aren't guys supposed to do that?"

"Maybe," Angela said, smiling. "Just talk to him. If you like him, hint around. He's smart and he'll catch on."

"What if he doesn't want to?" She was suddenly feeling like high school all over again. Luckily very few boys were interested in her then.

"I wouldn't take it to heart. I told you, he doesn't date, at least he didn't in high school," Angela reminded Bella. "If he doesn't, then, I'm going to start assuming he's gay."

Sighing Bella said, "That'd be my luck, you know."

"Something tells me that Edward Cullen is far from gay," commented Angela, grinning mischievously. Before Bella could ask her what she meant by that, she was checking her cell phone and telling Bella she needed to go. "I probably won't be back till the morning. Ben and his friends are having a movie marathon. You know how they are. You come if you like?" Bella shook her head. "Okay, I'll call you if I stay over," she rushed out saying. "I'll see you later. Bye! Have fun!"

"You too!" Bella called back and sighed, slumping against her pillow. _You don't even know this guy and already you're in deep. Get a grip!_ A tiny groan escaped her lips just as footsteps entered her room.

"Hey," said Edward, calmly, standing in her doorway like a Greek god. Bella sat up on her elbows and smiled, motioning for him to come in. "Angela told me you were back here. You okay?"

Bella nodded. "I'm fine. Just a little tired and woozy," she reassured him.

Carefully, he took a step inside and sat down on the edge of her bed. He surveyed her room and found that it too was just as cluttered with boxes as the rest of the apartment. "You weren't kidding about just moving in, were you?" he teased her. When Bella only nodded he moved closer to her, placing a hand on her forehead to check her temperature and asked, "Do you need anything?"

"No. I'll be fine."

"Are you sure? I can leave if you want. My work _is_ done after all…"

Bella sat up, straitening her shirt along the way, and sighed. "I guess you're right. Besides, I need to go shopping before I forget."

"Shopping for what?" Edward grabbed her hand and helped her up.

"Furniture and groceries," Bella replied. "I have a lot to get. I don't want to keep you from… whoever or whatever, any longer. I'm beginning to feel like a criminal for stealing you away for so long."

"Don't worry," Edward protested, "you're not keeping me from anything. Let me take you."

Bella laughed softly and shook her head. "Edward, really, you don't have to do that. You already helped me out enough. And I told you, it was my fault I fell."

He sighed and shook his head. "You think I want to go to repay you?" Bella looked at him curiously and he continued to say, "I want to go. Beside who will help you carry everything?"

"I have a truck," Bella pointed out.

"It looks older than my grandfather," he joked with her, grinning crookedly. "Please, let me take you? I'll leave you alone afterward if you really want me too. But let this clear my conscious. Besides, a lady shouldn't go out in the city alone, especially one who looks like you do."

Bella blushed at his very large and slightly over-dramatic wink, and sighed, giving up. "Flattery will get you know where… Okay… But you have help me unpack for at least half-an-hour," she demanded.

Edward held his hands up in mock-surrender. "Whatever you say, ma'am… that reminds me, erm, do I call you Bella?"

"Please do," she replied. She grabbed a jacket from top of a box and threw it on as she walked out of the room. "I hate when people call me Isabella. How did you know anyway?"

"Well," said Edward, following behind her, "I heard Angela call you that and I saw your name on all the boxes. So unless there's two Angela's here, I figured I must have been right."

Bella chuckled at him and threw him a dog bone from the counter. He caught without any hesitation and stared at it bewildered until Bella finally laughed. "Can you give that to Lizzy? I never leave her without giving her a treat."

"Oh," he murmured, sadly. "I thought you giving it to me. I am slightly hungry…"

Rolling her eyes, Bella replied, "Well, maybe if you're good I'll get you a kid's meal."

"Really?" Edward beamed at her enthusiastically. Snickering, Bella grabbed another bone and was ready to chuck it at his head but Edward laughed and threw his hands up to cover his face. "Alright, alight. I'll feed the dog. You're feisty, you know that?"

"Thank you," she sang in a sickening sweet voice.

It was already after one o'clock in the afternoon and the traffic was slow usually about this time. As soon as Edward had given Lizzy the treat they left the apartment and headed for the first furniture store they could find. The ride was rather quiet at first. Edward's music was soft in the background compared to the loud thoughts running thru Bella's head. She watched him drive, thumping his thumbs in rhythm with the light rock.

Bella shifted in the Volvo passenger seat so her legs her tucked closer. She wanted to ask him about what would have happened if Angela hadn't walked in. She might have just met him an hour ago, but already she felt she knew enough about him that he wasn't the kind of guy to randomly pick up wounded girls and take advantage of them. _What if he wasn't going to kiss you Bella_? She asked herself and frowned.

"So," prompted Edward, looking over at the pensive girl. "What are you thinking about?"

_You…_ "Nothing really; I was just thinking about what I needed to get."

"Really? It's weird. I can usually tell what people are thinking about," he said, "but with you, I can't seem to figure you out. I don't think you were thinking about shopping to tell the truth though."

"You're smart. How do you do that?"

"Just something my mother taught me early on," Edward replied with a grin. "She said it'd help me understand women and their needs, as well as help in the business world."

A tiny smile formed over Bella's lips. "I think your mother and I would have been good friends," she told him with a slight smile. Part of her wanted to change the subject; talking about his dead mother made her feel guilty for some reason. "Do you like Forks?"

Edward looked slightly bewildered by her question at first, curious as to how she knew he was from there, but then he remembered her roommate. "I love it. It's a nice place to live and raise a family. Although, I'm still partial to Chicago and in many ways it'll be hard to say goodbye one day."

"One day?"

"I still live there," he informed her, gently.

"Oh… I thought you lived in Forks?"

"My family does," he said. "My parents own a house out the side of town. My brother lives there too with his wife, Rosalie."

"I was born there, but I've only spent the summers in Forks." She picked at the hem of her shirt nervously and stared out the window. "My mom couldn't stand it."

Edward looked over at the girl beside him, shocked. "Your from Forks?"

"Yeah. I know your dad, Carlisle. I meant it when I said I have a natural talent for falling over my own feet," Bella told him, laughing. "I was walking down the stairs of Charlie's house to turn the stove off and slipped. I broke my leg and Carlisle fixed me up. He was really nice."

Edward laughed at her story while he drove. "And I thought you were just trying to make me feel better earlier."

Blushing, Bella replied, "I wish I was. I've had a few too many slips. Yesterday while I was moving my boxes in, I dropped a box on my toe. My kids think it's the greatest thing in the world when I get hurt."

"Kids?" Edward asked, astonished. She couldn't really have kids, could she? His Adams apple bobbed up and down when he swallowed nervously.

Bella laughed. Hard. "Well, there not my kids," she admitted, snickering. She couldn't help but grin when she saw Edward let go of the breath he had been holding. "I'm working part-time at a childcare center. Mainly the nursery and the pre-K, but sometimes I help out with the older kids too. They come in after school until parents can pick them up."

"That sounds…" Edward hesitated for a moment. Not that he had anything against children, he wanted a family of his own one day, but watching over snotty-nosed, screaming toddlers didn't sound like an easy job. "It sounds fun."

She beamed happily. "Oh, it is! I love my job. I was half-tempted to change my major to childhood development, but my first love will always be books, so I couldn't. Besides, they needed someone with an English degree to teach."

"What do you teach?"

"The alphabet. Spelling. How to draw… things like that," she giggled softly. "And I read to them. Story time is my favorite. We draw a name every day, and they get to pick the book of the day and sit in the royal chair all day."

Edward snickered. "The royal chair?"

"Yes," Bella confirmed, watching out the window to see a group of small children crossing the streets and holding hands. "It was a joke one day. Maggie – she's the sweetest girl you'll ever meet – is really shy and it was her first day, so I told her she could sit in the chair beside me and hold my hand, and no one would bother her because she was in the royal seat. Since then everyone calls it the royal chair."

"How long have you worked there?" He asked looking over to watch the girl. Her face was pressed against the cool glass gently and her dark hair, which had mostly fallen from her ponytail, covered most of the side of her face like a veil, but he could still see the burning in her cheeks. He fought with himself not to reach over and brush the hair away. He might not be able to control himself he touched her delicate looking skin, he'd be scared to break her.

"Since the end of July," she replied, removing her face from the window to look at him. "So, about two months I guess. I love it there. Not what I had in mind for a career, but it suits me for now."

"What do you want to do after graduation?" he pressed on. "Teach?"

Bella laughed and shook her head. "Oh crow's feet, no!" He sniggered at her form of cursing, thinking it was cute and slightly odd. "I'm really not sure. I always wanted to write, maybe publish. I love books, but to be honest, I haven't thought that much ahead…"

"My brother was the same way. He's a bit of a goof, but Rosalie finally put him in place. He graduated from Harvard in the law school. It took him a while to figure out, but he's one of the best lawyers I've ever seen," he spoke highly.

"Wow, so a family of lawyers?" Bella grinned. "At least I know who to call if I need a lawyer. So what about the rest of your family?"

"Don't worry, Emmett or I would be more than happy to represent you. Well, my mother likes to fix up old homes and sell them, but that's more of a hobby. My sister, Alice, does something with the fashion industry – I'm not sure. I usually block her out when she talks about her job. I'm not really into fashion, but she's obsessed," Edward said, sighing. "And her husband, Jasper, works along side of Emmett."

Bella was slightly stunned. He had a whole family of sophisticated and successful business people. It took her a minute to comprehend everything. "Remind me to never piss your family off. Are you blood related to everyone?"

He laughed. "Only Esme; she's my real aunt. Emmett and Alice are blood siblings, adopted a couple of years before me. Esme couldn't have kids, so they adopted right away. Both she and Carlisle come from wealthy families so there was no question about them being so young. Then about a year after adopting me, Jasper and Rosalie's mom died – she was Carlisle's sister. No one knows anything about their father anymore. They left him after he start abusing Rose," Edward told her softly, frowning deeply. "So what about your family?"

"I'm an only child. My mom is a kindergarten teacher. Phil works at the high school, coaching baseball after the minor league and he teaches PE. Charlie is the chief of police in Forks."

"Wait! Charlie Swan?" He asked, his eyebrows knitting together. "He's your dad?"

Laughing, Bella replied, "The very one."

They were quiet for a moment and then Edward just laughed. It was deep and throaty, and Bella thought she'd never heard anything so wonderful in her life.

"No way," he gasped between deep breaths for air. "Charlie and Emmitt really hit it off a few years back. He helped out with their senior prank and it got slightly out of hand, but Emmett was able to sweet talk Chief out of any trouble. The whole thing blew over."

"Oh, God," Bella murmured. "Emmett is the guy who glued all the doors closed and decorated the classrooms with different holiday themes, isn't he?"

"Yeah…"

Bella died laughing. "I remember Charlie telling me about that!"

"Did he tell you about the bear costume?" Edward questioned.

Bella shook her head. "Not that I remember…"

"It was the best part. He dressed up in a bear costume he found and ran around in it all day to scare people. The art teacher almost had a heart attack. No one knew who it was so all these rumors were going around…" He laughed at the memory for six-foot-five Emmett dressed up. Bella was wiping her eyes and laughing so hard her face was all pink again. "He held up a sign during lunch that said "free hugs from Fork's favorite grizzly". There's whole page in the yearbook with him. Everyone loved him because he was the class clown and he's a lot like a kid."

"I couldn't imagine living with him," said Bella, giggling. "What else has he done?"

Looking over at the dazzling man driving, she watched his reddish-brown brow shoot up. "That could take a while. You really want to know?"

She shook her head yes vigorously.

"Don't say I didn't warn you then…"

* * *

**Note:** Before anything, thank you so much everyone for your reviews and alerts! I love the feedback I've gotten, and I hope that the story continues to please everyone. 

This chapter is defiantly not how I planned; it's actually about five pages longer, but I decided to make the rest a whole other chapter because this was getting a bit lengthy, and I'm worried about dragging it out. This part is hard to write, because the characters are so new to each other. I have to constantly remind myself that they just met!

Please review and give some feedback; how are the characters? Constructive criticism is very welcome.


	4. Men With Fangs vs Ben and Jerry's

**Note:** First, thank you **EVERYONE** for reading and your support; I'm astounded by the amount of review/favs/and alerts!

Second, wow, I am sorry for the delay in the chapter. I've even had most of this typed, I was going to finish writing the story, but it was taking so long that I decided to heck with that idea. But, I do however have quite a bit more already jotted and written down. And I'm really excited for where this is going. Just hint, watch the movie _Serendipity_. Other than that, I guess you could say I have no legit excuse to justify being lazy. Haha. A lot of my mind has been focused in my new school, college audition coming up and hockey (And other random stories I've started).

Third, I do not own _Twilight_, _New Moon_, _Eclipse_, or any of these characters. Everything belongs to Stephenie Meyer and her publishers.

Anyway, here's chapter 4. Enjoy!

* * *

Always On My Mind

-♥-

For the rest of the ride into the city they shared stories, all of which made Bella laugh so hard she had tears in her eyes. She told him about Lauren, who he knew from school too and to say the least, was not a fan of hers. The whole time he talked about her, he looked like he was eating a lemon or sour milk. Bella had the feeling that there was a little more to her than he was letting on, but who was she to pry? She just met the guy, it's not like she could expect him to suddenly open up and admit his darkest secrets or anything.

By the time they got to the furniture store it was after two. Seattle had gotten a light mist of rain (just enough to make his copper-toned hair curl around the edges) and the sun was hidden behind the usual Washington clouds. Edward held the door open for her and led her around with his hand on her back. Silently, she thanked God he couldn't hear or feel her heart that was thumping faster than she thought possible; just looking at him made her cheeks blush and her palms sweat.

It took nearly an hour to find everything she wanted. Her money was limited and could only stretch so far and the owner had offered her a rather good deal on several things. She purchased a whole bedroom set in polished cherry wood. It was pricey, but as soon as she saw it she fell in love. The bed had post that rose up with delicate carvings and it was low enough that Lizzy would be able to jump without any problems. It looked like it was straight out of a movie.

While she shopped, Edward went around testing mattresses and lazy boys – even though she told him she didn't need them. She ended up getting a black lazy boy that he kept sitting in whenever she was looking at something else. It matched the couch Angela had almost perfectly anyway.

"I really don't know why I'm getting this," she told Edward while she wrote her address down for the delivery truck. "I'm never going to use it. Lizzy will sit in it more than me."

Edward chuckled and wrapped his arm around her shoulder. "Well, you'll be making Lizzy a very happy dog. And if I might add, you looked very comfortable in it."

"What can I say; I've been lugging boxes around for two days. Sleeping on that old bed in my room hasn't done me any good. It's been at Charlie's since I out grew my bassinet."

"He never got you a new one?"

"Well, I didn't stay with him very often until I got older, even then it was only for a month at the most. I almost moved in during high school when Renée got remarried – I felt bad that she had to stay home and take care of me instead of being with her new husband, but as soon as I brought up moving to her she freaked out," Bella told Edward as they walked back to the car.

"You wanted to move to make your mother happy?" asked Edward while he opened her door for her get in.

"Yes."

Edward shook his head. "You're the most unselfish person I think I've ever had the pleasure to meet, Bella Swan." He grinned at her and then slammed the door shut before she could retort back; he barely knew her, but for some reason he had a feeling Bella always had a reason to justify her actions. He didn't know if that made him more curious or amazed at her.

Ten minutes later they were on their way to the grocery store. Bella had pulled out a list from her purse and sighed while they walked through the glass doors. "This is going to take forever."

"We could shop separately?" Edward suggested, looking over the long list.

She shook her head. "No, it'll be fine. I just hope you didn't have plans?"

"None." He pulled the list from her hand with a grin and let her grab the cart. "You should start in the produce; you get the oranges and I'll get the apples."

They went down separate aisles and worked their way down the list, checking off each item as they went. They had already made it down a quarter of the list when they turned into the frozen foods; frozen vegetables, pizzas, and Ben and Jerry's.

_Whatever that is_, Edward mused. He plucked a few boxes of corn and turned to see Bella bending down behind her cart.

"Bella?" Edward asked while he dropped the few packages into her cart and stared at her reddened cheeks. "Are you okay?"

She shook her head and frowned. "No… There's someone I don't want to talk to down there…"

He looked around aisle, only spotting a little old lady looking at fish sticks and a blond guy who was filling up the freezer. He looked about their age, maybe younger than him, and very familiar dirty blond spikes. Immediately, Edward pulled her up and put his arm around her waist, pulling Bella close to him, tucking her under his chin. She was tense at first but relaxed when she felt his hand running up and down her arm soothingly.

"Is that Mike Newton?" Edward asked, looking down at her and brushing away her hair from her cheeks.

"Yes," she mumbled. "He's had a thing for me since I met him freshman year. He dates one of my friends on-and-off, but won't stop asking me out... I kind of… turned him down a week ago and haven't talked to him since."

"You did?" Edward asked, beaming. He laughed when she nodded. "Just ignore him; if he says anything, I'm here, okay?"

He gently removed her from his arms hesitantly and continued shopping, piling in random things, and watching her carefully. She looked annoyed for the most part, but every time she caught his eye she'd smile brightly. He could understand her annoyance toward Newton; he didn't like him either. He didn't know how to let things go and even though he knew that Alice was taken, he continued to flirt with her constantly. In some way, Edward felt bad for him. Alice didn't even give him the time of day.

"Bella, we have to move down the aisle, okay?" he told her softly. She nodded and pushed the cart further down till there were only a few feet between them and Mike, whose attention was too the old lady at the moment. "Do you need any frozen-"

Edward's words were cut off when Mike suddenly saw them.

"Bella!" he exclaimed, grinning and walking over to hug her. His bare arms were cold and uncomfortable around her. It was returned with an awkward one-armed hug that still made Edward see red. He had to hold his breath and turn away, pretending to read the ingredients on a box.

_You don't even know this girl_, Edward, he reminded himself quickly. _Don't get attached_.

"How are you?" Mike asked.

"I'm good, Mike. You?" Bella replied crisply. "I didn't know you worked here."

Edward turned around to see him shrug and lean against their cart. He wanted nothing more than to flip it over on top of the boy.

"Just started a couple of days ago," Mike told her brightly.

"Oh," Bella whispered making a mental note to never come back to the store again. "That's nice."

"Yeah, it is. Great hours. I even get Friday nights off you know," he told her suggestively. He stood up straighter and ran his hand over his spiked hair, smirking. "We could go out sometime when you're free."

Blushing, Bella looked over at Edward for help. He casually walked to her, pulled in his arms, and kissed her forehead while dropping in another box. Pretending not to have even noticed Mike before that, he turned and held his hand out. "Hey, Newton; I didn't see you there."

Mike looked peeved. His lips set in a firm line as he looked back and forth between Edward and Bella, who had melted in his arms happily. He shook Edward's hand, although not to gently. He made sure to give him a nice squeeze and smirked. "Hey, Cullen. How are you?"

"I'm great. I haven't seen you around," Edward said, tilting his head to smell Bella's hair for the first time; strawberries and something more floral. He couldn't place his finger on it, but he was sure he'd smelled it before. It certainly matched her perfectly.

"Yeah, I've been busy. I thought you moved to Texas or something?" he asked rudely.

Edward laughed. "Chicago. I've been working for my birth father's firm. But I'm going to be moving up here soon hopefully. My brothers have started their own firm. I'm visiting and helping them finish up the paperwork."

"Oh… So are you and Bella friends?" Mike asked, curious.

"Something along those lines," Edward told him smoothly, clearly enjoying this by the way he was smirking. "We're together. We'd love to stay and catch up, but we really should go; we need to stock up our fridge and move the new bed in – I'm eager to break it in. It was good to see you again."

Bella held her breath as Edward pulled her along to the next aisle. As soon as they were out of ear-shot, they both let go of the air they were holding and laughed. Edward was bent over the cart, gripping it tightly.

"Oh, wow…" Bella gasped. Her cheeks were bright pink and her eyes were watering. "That… was the… you… thank you!"

She latched her arms around him suddenly into a large hug, still laughing. The feeling of her warm body pressed so close to him caused an eruption of rather ungentlemanly thoughts that he berated himself for mentally. Almost awkwardly he hugged her back. It's just a hug Edward, like Alice or Rosalie…

"I'm sorry for the vulgar lie," he whispered into her neck. "I hope I didn't offend you."

Pulling away, Bella frowned. "It's alright, Edward. You did me a favor."

"I really don't like that guy," Edward growled. "He looks at you like you're a piece of meat."

"Speaking of meat, are you hungry?" Bella asked softly and pushed the cart forward.

Edward nodded. "Starving actually. Would you like to get dinner?"

"How about I make you dinner," offered Bella, plopping bread into the top of a pile. "We can test out the new plates Angela's mom found us. Real ugly with chickens on the front!"

Edward laughed heartily. "Alright, as long as I can help cook."

Bella grinned. "Deal," she stated, holding hand out for him to shake. "I make a mean mushroom ravioli, and we can have Ben and Jerry's for dessert."

"Have what?"

"Ben and Jerry's," Bella repeated. When a look of confusion flashed over his face, Bella gasped. "You've _got_ to be kidding me. You've never had Ben and Jerry's?"

"Um… No?" He fidgeted slightly. Wasn't that a cartoon?

Before he could ask, Bella grabbed his hand and began dragging him down to the back to the frozen foods – Mike had thankfully left – and stopped in front of the ice cream. The whole way she kept going on and on about him being a conspiracy.

"Ben and Jerry's is the best ice cream brand in the world," she told him. "Pick one."

"What's your favorite?"

Bella pulled out a tub and handed it to him. "Half baked. It's got brownies and chocolate chip cookie dough in it. Angela and I stock up on it every summer and eat it while were at the beach in La Push."

"La Push? I don't think I've been there since I was little."

He looked over the tub; it did sound delicious. Then again, anything at this rate sounded good. His stomach was rattling every few seconds. He was a man who didn't think straight on an empty stomach; it caused him to get grouchy. He was fighting hard against his instinct right now. Bella Swan was too beautiful and kind to put up with him being an irritable, famished lion.

He went down the freezer while Bella said something about visiting La Push sometime, and read each container carefully. Finally he just picked up a second tub of the half baked and handed it over to the petite girl. She gave him a silly look.

"I have a feeling between the two of us, we'll need more than one," he said, grinning. Bella smiled back and tossed the ice cream in with the rest of the groceries while he stretched and said, "I think that's almost everything. I'm starving."

--

"Holy crow! Between boxes and these groceries, my arms will never be the same," Bella whined as she brought in the last shopping bag.

Edward was right behind her, chuckling. He had made sure to leave her the lighter bags, but even they seemed to be a bit much. Bella had loaded up on can goods. Every time she went in with a bag from the Volvo, he would quickly toss as many cans and heavy items as he could into his own to lighten up the load. He didn't want her to think he thought she was weak, but he could tell the brunette was almost completely knackered.

"Wouldn't it be nice to have super-hero powers or be a vampire?" she mused aloud.

Edward laughed heartily. "Yes, I can see you now flying over Seattle with Lizzy as your sidekick… The next Doug."

"_Pffft_. Yeah, well I can see you as Captain Oblivious," she teased. "I clearly wouldn't fly – I'd probably fly into a flock of birds or trees. No, I'd be… Can't I just be a vampire? I always loved a man with fangs."

"Who can't go out in the sun without risking his death? Aren't you the girl who said she hated clouds?"

"Dislike," she corrected. "Besides, what would it matter? We'd be too busy romancing ourselves in his coffin during the day for me to even go out."

"That'd be pretty cramped coffin."

She smirked. "We'd make it work."

Bella slumped against the door frame and watched him bend over to put the bags down. She got a very nice view of his backside and enjoyed it greatly. Although he was quite a bit taller than her and very lean, she could tell by the way his running pants fit that he was very… athletic. _And what a cute tush!_ She thought, blushing.

"Where should I put these? Bella?" Edward asked, turning around and catching her gaze on his backside. He grinned widely when she blushed deeper and sputtered an apology. "Where you checking my butt out?"

Bella almost looked horrified. "N-no! I was, um, staring off in space… Where's Lizzy?"

As soon as her name was out the hyper-active dog appeared, almost tackling Edward to the ground. Luckily he caught himself on the counter and just laughed. "I guess that means she's likes me?"

"Since when did my own dog say hello to strangers before me? Lizzy I'm hurt!" Bella fiend a pout.

"You know," said Edward, "you should be proud; she's smart, pretty, and she has good taste in men."

"Like I said; she takes after me. Help me put these away so we can make dinner?"

He nodded. "Sure."

While Edward put away the groceries, Bella went through random boxes to find pots and pans. After the third one, she found an old set that Charlie had given her, along with an apron that read, "#1 Mom" and cooking ware. Edward snatched the apron away and tied on himself making Bella laugh at how silly he looked.

"It's a good look for you, mom," she teased.

The cooking didn't take nearly as long as she thought with two hands and Edward was good at listening to directions. He used precise measurements every time and hummed some unknown melody loudly making her laugh. By the time the meal was cooked he had covered his shirt in flour and a little sauce and Bella wasn't much better off with flour in her hair.

"Do you think we should light a candle?" he asked, jokingly while putting the ravioli on the chicken plates.

Bella's voice tinkled with laughter. "I dunno. Do you think we could find a chicken shaped one anywhere? I hate to throw off the theme."

He pretended to think about for a moment and then sighed dramatically. "Not enough time. I'm starving and I don't do well on an empty stomach."

"Then no. Let's just eat."

He waited for Bella to have a seat, pushed it in, and then took his own directly in front of her. He had made a salad while Bella had been preparing the pasta that they both ate almost ravenously.

"This is good," Edward praised after taking his first bite from the ravioli.

"Thanks." She grinned and blushed slightly. "My mom wasn't much of a cook for fancy meals, but she taught me this."

"Do you cook for all the guys pick up?" he teased. "Good food is the one way to man's heart."

She laughed. "I'd say yes, but I'm pretty sure I've never picked up a guy before and besides Charlie you're the only one I've ever cooked for."

Edward looked shocked. "You've never cooked for a boyfriend?"

"I've never had one." Bella's face began to rise in color from her neck up. "In high school I was the quiet, shy girl. I was too busy taking care of Renée. And with college I've just never had the time."

"I can understand, college was busy for me too."

"Can I ask you a question?" He nodded. "Angela said you never dated or even gave girls the time of day. Why?"

"I've dated in college, just casual, nothing serious, but in high school, dating seemed like a complete hassle. The point of dating is to find your partner. To me, being sixteen and tied down to a girl who I most likely wouldn't end up with seemed ridiculous. I want to have a career at least before I get married. To many times relationships fail because of a lack of funds or commitment." They took a sip of their drinks and he continued, "Plus, I was never interested in any of the girls in school. Everything was too superficial."

"Wow," Bella murmured quietly, "I'm shocked. So you date now?"

He shrugged. "I haven't really in the past few months. I almost got in a relationship my junior year of college with a girl. She was nice and smart, but after a few dates there was nothing else. We never laughed or had fun."

"What was her name?"

"Tanya. She was a business major," he told her primly and finished the rest of his ravioli.

"She sounds exotic," she commented. "Ready for a dessert? We can eat and watch a movie."

He nodded. "That's sounds great. And if exotic means half Native, then I guess she was. I didn't pay enough attention."

Edward grabbed both his and Bella's plates and rinsed them quickly under the water while Bella pulled out a tub of ice cream and two bowls to fill. He watched her dig around for something, taking his time to watch her dark hair fall over her face and shoulders as he filled both bowls. When she popped up and produced a small bottle of sprinkles, he smiled.

"It's even better like this," she gushed, pouring the colorful candies over a bowl. "Want some?"

Nodding, he went into the living room and looked through her movies. There wasn't very many to choose from, most were romantic stories or horrors, but she had a few suspense films as well. He grabbed the first one and popped the DVD in.

Bella took a seat on the couch holding their ice cream until he sat down and took his. She had already taken a large chunk out from hers, moaning about how delicious it was. It was complete heaven for her, sweet and cold. And absolutely perfect.

"Van Helsing?" she asked when the title appeared, grinning. "I never took you for a guy who liked vampires, Edward."

"Well, I never took you for a girl who liked men with fangs either," he shot back, slopping a bit of ice cream down his chin. She laughed and rubbed it away with her thumb, smiling. The moment she touched him his skin began to tingle. "Thanks."

They weren't even half way through the film when Bella dozed off, resting her head on his arm. Both their bowls lying in a pile at his feet. He was starting to feel the day wear on him as well, and judging by the darkness outside, it was getting late. He sighed and moved Bella's head to stand up, hoping not to wake her.

"Edward," she mumbled suddenly while he bent down to pick up the bowls. When he stood up and looked down, her breathing was still slow and her eyes were closed. But once again her lips moved to say something that he could catch on.

He bent down so he was level with her, and kissed her forehead gently. "Bye Bella."

"You leaving?" she mumbled almost incoherently. Her eyes flickered open several times, the dark lashes tickling her skin.

"Yeah, I've got a flight to catch tomorrow morning," he told her sadly. Suddenly, a part of him didn't want to go. He was enamored by the girl and wanted nothing more than to eat her super sweet ice cream and talk about vampire fantasies.

"Oh," was all she said, turning to look at him better. Her voice was soft. "Thank you for helping me today."

He smiled. "You're welcome. Although I should be thanking you. I had fun."

Bella wanted to ask if she'd see him again. Or for his number. _Something_. But she couldn't get any words out.

She started to stand up so she could see him out, but he stopped her. "Don't. Just… Don't move yet," Edward said, coaxing her back down.

She looked up at him with eyes full of something that he couldn't understand; he was completely lost in the deep brown pools. Before he knew what he was doing, he was pressing his lips to her. When she sighed, he could taste the sweetness from her ice cream just barely on lips. They were warm, full, and to utterly delightful that he didn't want to stop. Her hands were crawling up his chest to the back his neck where she wound her fingers in his coppery hair.

And then it was over, leaving her heart to race harder than ever before while he pried her hands away gently to stand up.

"Goodbye Edward."

* * *

**Note:** I'm not sure how I like the ending to this one, but I wanted it to be abrupt. This chapter was so hard to write... I kept wanting to write first person... I hope you guys enjoyed it though! I had fun with the vampire parts. I couldn't help myself.

We're getting closer to meeting everyone! I'm super excited about the next couple of chapters.

Please review and give some feedback; how do you like the characters? Are they to OC? Constructive criticism is very welcome and encouraged!


End file.
